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So, I'm apartment hunting. I had been trying to find a room in an available apartment in downtown JC or Hoboken. But it's not going so well, and moving in with strangers is a little unappealing anyways.
I work in midtown manhattan (one block from Port Authority) so I started to look at Weehawken. Read some threads, feel pretty good about looking there. Made a few appointments for tomorrow to see some places. As a bonus, I may even be able to land a small 1 bedroom or studio in my price range (under 1000, preferably about 900). But it seems like the market is really inactive in this town, very few listings compared to JC and Hoboken. I have checked both craigslist and the weehawken reporter - does anyone have any ideas of where else to look?
My other question was this: I have been looking for places between Park and Blvd E somewhere close to where the 128 bus will stop. But I found a listing for a place which is right by the library (495 and BlvdE intersection). I know the 166 doesn't stop there but NJTransit.com is telling me lots of other buses do stop there on their way into Port Authority, and this doesn't seem like it would be too far from the Pathmark either. I will be selling my car, so having close by buses into work as well as a reasonably close grocery is rather important. Anybody have any idea if this BlvdE and North Marginal bus stop is accessible by foot from the Woodrow High School/Library location? I know there are cliffs in the area and I can't tell from the street map.
Also, any general advice to someone looking in Weehawken?
Lots of apartments here have "for rent" signs in the windows of the homes which takes some walking/driving around. CraigsList doesn't have much? That's strange.
There are two reasons why you are not finding listings for Weehawken. First it is a very small community and doesn't have as many houses/buildings as JC or Hoboken. The second reason is because that majority of the places available are being rented out by private landlords and most of them don't post listings on the internet or in the paper, they just put signs in the windows. I just moved here to Weehawken and the advice I was given from the locals was to walk around the area. I am not sure about that particular bus stop you are referring to, but I know most of the bus stops are temporarily closed along marginal highway until December. As for neighborhoods, there isn't a neighborhood in Weehawken that I don't like personally. I live in Weehawken Heights and there is a lot of options into the city from here. Since you don't have kids (I assume because you are looking for a studio or 1BR)why limit yourself to just Weehawken? There are a lot of nice places in your price range in Union City and West New York. The area of Union City that is near me is nice, it is less hectic than the rest of UC. I live in Weehawken Heights and my neighborhood, which is right on the border with UC, makes up the Hackensack Reservoir area with UC and there isn't much of a difference between the Weehawken side and the Union City side. The biggest difference is the schools.
Yes, the Weehawken apartment market is inefficient. But that is good news for renters willing to put in the legwork. They can find poorly marketed apartments at attractive rents that people looking only on the internet don’t know exist.
Take a walk around the neighborhoods along Boulevard East and Gregory Avenue, along with the area you identified near the Weehawken library. A lot of the available apartments are located in owner-occupied 2-family homes and the vacancies are advertised only by a sign on the front porch. You’ll find options in your price range.
Buses
NJ transit buses and gypsy buses connecting Weehawken to Manhattan run virtually non-stop during the morning rush hour. Everyplace in Weehawken is within 10 minutes’ walk of a bus stop. The return journey is trickier because the buses leave from different spots in and around the Port Authority Bus Terminal.
The trip into Manhattan takes between 10 and 30 minutes, depending where you board the bus and the level of traffic congestion. The trip is slightly quicker returning home in the evening.
From a commuting standpoint, the best location in Weehawken is the area near the intersection of Pleasant Avenue and Route 495, the highway linking Weehawken and Manhattan. North Marginal and South Marginal Roads run parallel to Route 495. The bus stops are located on the Marginal roads. Several bus routes converge on South Marginal at Pleasant. This is the last bus stop before Manhattan. Likewise, North Marginal at Pleasant is the first stop for many bus routes coming out of Manhattan.* These bus stops are within a 3 to 10 minute walk from Gregory Avenue and the library area. See the 123, 125, 159 bus schedules.
Boulevard East bus stops offer similar convenience but the trip is slowed by stop lights and traffic. Check out the 128 bus schedule.
Note
* The bus stop at North Marginal and Pleasant is temporarily closed for construction work that is scheduled to be completed in a few months. The resulting detours add confusion and about 10 minutes to the evening commute from Manhattan to Weehawken and Union City. The morning to Manhattan is unaffected. The construction work should result in better pedestrian access to the bus stops. http://tinyurl.com/36shs3s
There are steps that you can walk down from the Library section. They are just north of the Hess station on Blvd east. I get on the bus at Fulton street (north of there). At busy times, the buses are usually full by the time it gets to the "steps" stop, if you travel between 7:45 and 8:30.
I agree with the other poster that you'll need to walk around and look for signs. It seems most don't use Craigslist or brokers to rent their places. I prefer the northern end of town (north of 495). It's closer to restaurants and Pathmark, but it will be hard to find a place for $900. I see shares/roomates wanted on Craigslist. Not sure if that's an option for you.
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